Evicted Depok people occupy House compound

Evicted Depok people occupy House compound

JAKARTA (JP): More than 70 residents of Pancoran Mas, Depok,
who were recently expelled after occupying the National
Commission on Human Rights office, took up position Saturday at
the House of Representatives compound.

One of the senior residents, Jacobus Marpaung, said yesterday
they recently moved from the commission office on Jl. Latuharhari
in Central Jakarta to a building belonging to the Bogor Regency
in Cibinong.

After several hours at the building, the residents --
including women and children -- were transferred to a building in
Bekasi because the Bogor Regency could not find suitable shelter
for them.

The residents later learned the building was used for
rehabilitating prostitutes, said Marpaung.

"We did not want to stay at the building because we are not
prostitutes and later we decided to move to this compound," he
said.

The residents said they would continue to occupy the House of
Representatives compound until their demands could be met by
Bogor and Depok authorities.

Marpaung said they would ask to meet House members today,
seeking legislators' help to solve their problems.

On April 17, the Bogor regency and Depok mayoralty bulldozed
the residents' 700 shanty houses built on 19 hectares of land
belonging to the Ministry of Health.

The residents, who have occupied the land since 1975, demanded
the Bogor regency provide compensation and temporary shelter for
them.

The residents, mostly from North Sumatra, have written about
their plight to the Bogor regency, the Depok mayoralty, the
Ministry of Home Affairs and President Soeharto.

The residents have not yet received any satisfying response.

The residents occupied the commission office for five months
until a police colonel ordered them to leave the site, saying the
office was not a shelter for evicted people.

"Now, I agree the human rights body should be shut down
because it could do nothing for us," he said, referring to a
proposal for the closure of the body.

As of yesterday, residents were seen sitting in the grounds of
the House. Some were also seen drying their clothes. (jun)